Cooroy Service Station EIA 21_06_16

Convenience Retail

Surveys of households in SEQ have indicated that between 10% and 25% of the household retail
expenditure is directed to convenience retail facilities.

Assuming that 15% of the Trade Area retail expenditure is directed towards convenience retail
and multiplying the retail expenditure base by the projected number of households or spending
units (TABLE 4.1), this translates to a 2016 convenience retail expenditure base of $9.7 million,
rising to $11.7 million by 2026. This reflects an increase in the retail convenience expenditure
base of $2million between 2016 and 2026.

Adopting an average productivity level of $5,000/m2 for convenience retail floorspace, this
suggests that the Trade Area would generate growth in demand for convenience retail facilities
in the order of 400m2 between 2016 and 2026, due only to the projected population and
household growth over this period.

As at 2016, it is anticipated that the Trade Area population would have demand for some 1,940m2
of convenience based retailing. Existing convenience retail facilities within the Trade Area are
limited to the BP service stations within Cooroy of approximately 210m2.

Therefore, in regards to general convenience retailing, there appears to be demand for further
such retailing in the Trade Area. Furthermore, and despite this dynamic, the convenience
component of the proposed development comprises just 195m2 GFA (120m2 trade area) which
would be primarily an ancillary function to the service station for motorists, whilst also meeting
some of the unmet demand for convenience facilities in Cooroy. The location of the subject site
and scale of the proposed development, together with its Highway orientation, is unlikely to
fragment the function of Cooroy.

It should also be noted that while there is overlap; convenience retailing in a service station of
about 195m2 as proposed, would be different to convenience retailing in a larger small-format
supermarket or convenience store such as the proposed Myall St development or the existing
IGA supermarket. The retail offer in a service station would be highly focussed on snacks and
drinks, with some specialist auto related items (e.g. oils, maps, batteries) and a very limited range
of dry goods and personal care products and other goods particularly tailored to motorists such
as mobile phone accessories. The retail offer in a larger convenience store is likely to have fewer
snacks than the service station, more dry goods and personal care products and some fresh
produce.

The fuel retailing function of the service station is the reason for these differences; with the
service station’s clientele almost exclusively car based and likely to be undertaking the vehicle
trip for reasons other than convenience retailing. The convenience retail component is often an
extra to the fuel retailing, tempting the customer into an additional purchase, hence, the higher
proportion of the retail floorspace dedicated to snacks and drinks.


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